The
Slate Run Living Historical Farm is one of the most culturally significant sites
in central Ohio. At this farm rural agricultural life as it was in the 1880s can
be found. The buildings, machinery, livestock, plants, and crops are typical of
those found on farms one hundred years ago.

Slate
Run brings together the many elements that make Ohio so beautiful. Everything
from wooded, rolling hills and steep ridges to wetlands and farmed areas can be
found here.

The
Metro Park's beauty can best be experienced by hiking on one of the nature trails.
Sugar Maple Trail winds through ravines and ridgetops that were formed from Berea
sandstone wearing away to reveal the shale underneath. Five Oaks Trail is named
for the five species of oak trees that can be seen while walking on the trail.
A variety of wildflowers, animals, birds, and fishes are also observed when hiking
through this park. For More information on the park write to:

What
will impress a person the most about Green's Heritage Museum is the extent to
which the proprietor, William Green, has gone to collect the variety of buildings
and pieces found here. An assortment of collectibles from toy trains, to model
tractors, to a collection of bikes, visitors will be amazed by the variety and
number of items the Green's have acquired through their life. And, probably the
highlight of a visit is admiring the 50 some pieces of antique horse drawn carriages
including an Abbott & Downing Mud Coach. From a 1799 Smoke House to the 1930s
White Castle Restaurant, all of the 14 buildings represent a unique part of central
Ohio's history.

Circleville's most famous
son, Ted Lewis, for which the city park is named for, is remembered in the Ted
Lewis Museum. Ted Lewis had one of the very first recognized jazz bands and for
whom many other well known musicians including: Beeny Goodman, Fats Waller, the
Dorseys, got their start.

The
museum is housed in the only remaining building from the original town circle
and has a small theater which runs early TV and movie clips recalling the jazz
entertainer's popularity. Memorabilia like his clarinet, old top hat and sheet
music, 'When My Baby Smiles at Me,' are found here organizing his career and hometown
roots.

A one-of-a kind museum
that will warm the heart and stimulate the mind is what can be found in the small
community of Ashville. This museum has been nationally recognized on the Oprah
Winfrey Show, in the book, New Roadside America, and by the Sunday New York Times.

The
Musuem has a display which tells about the silver nuggets unearthed at the Snake
Den Mounds and gives information about famous writers, inventors, politicians,
entertainers, and the not-so-famous who once lived in this railroad boom town.

The Musuem is open to the public free of charge
all year from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Call the museum at 740-983-9864 to arrange a tour
or leave a message.

Mount Oval, a Pickaway County Historic Landmark, was built in 1832 by William and Jane Boggs Renick. T he name stems from its construction on an oval shaped knoll on the Pickaway Plains south of Circleville, Ohio along the old Scioto Trail, which is now US Route 23. In the Archives of Early American Architecture at the Library of Congress in Washington, D. C., Mount Oval is recognized among the early homes of Ohio for its unique design, excellent craftsmanship and beauty of detail.

Tours are available by reservation only by contacting the Pickaway County Historical Society at 740-474-1495. Suggested donations are: $7 Adults, $5 Students/Seniors, Free for children under 12. For more information, visit the Pickaway County Historical Society website at www.pickawayhistory.org

Pickaway
County Historical Museums

Pickaway
County is proud to have two museums operated by the Pickaway County Historical
Society. The Clarke-May House is home to the Historical Society's offices and
offers residents and visitors a look back at the county's past. The Clarke-May
Museum is home for the Pickaway County Historical Society but it is also a museum
full of artifacts and history that can be toured. It is open to the public April-October,
Tuesdays-Fridays from 1:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m. or by calling to make special arrangements,
(740) 474-1495. pkwyhist@ohiohills.com

Genealogical Library and Historical Displays. Research Library open to public Tuesday through Friday l-4 p.m. and 9 a.m. to noon on Saturdays. Facility houses both genealogical and historical research materials - obituaries, cemetery records, photos, family records, scrapbooks, ledgers, tax records, deeds, Pickaway County census and newspapers. We have the Pickaway County Probate Court records 1810-1955 and Common Pleas records 1810-1910. For more information, please call or contact by email pkwyhist@ohiohills.com.

Ohio
Erie Canal
The Pickaway County Historical & Genealogical Society aquired a 2.5 mile long
section of the Ohio Erie Canal in 1999. Located in Wayne township along Canal
Road, it stretches from the old Penn Central Railroad right-of-way south to the
Scioto River access maintained by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, near
where the old village of Westfall once flourished. The canal is maintained as
an historical, educational, and recreational are open to the public.

Construction on the Ohio Erie Canal was begun in 1825. The Canal reached Circleville
in 1831 and by 1835 linked the interior of the state with Lake Erie on the North
and the Ohio River on the South. This gave the Ohio farmer and merchant access
to the markets on the East Coast, a great boom to the economy of the state's interior.
The Canal cost $4,695,000 and was 333 miles from Portsmouth to Cleveland. The
trip by canal boat took about 80 hours. It was slow, but one horse could pull
a canal boat laden with freight that would require several wagons and 30 horses
to pull over land.

The coming of the railroad about the middle of the
19th century was the beginning of the end of the Canal Era in Ohio, but the canal
was in use until 1913. The aqueduct at Circleville which carried canal boats across
the Scioto River was the longest on the canal. There were 152 locks along the
route.

The Historical & Genealogical Society and many volunteers
have spent countless hours cleaning up the old canal and developing the Canal
Park, located on Canal Road. Kayaking and canoeing are just some of the many activities
you can find along the canal. For more information please contact the Pickaway
County Historical Society at (740) 474-1495 or email them at pkwymuseum@yahoo.com

Stage's
Pond State Nature Preserve, dedicated August 23, 1974, is nature's own monument
to the great ice fields which once covered most of Ohio 17,000 years ago. Stage's
Pond is an example of one of the distinctive features of glaciated areas, a kettle
lake. As the glacier receded from this part of present-day Pickaway County, an
immense chunk of ice broke free and remained behind to be covered with accumulating
sands, gravels, and other glacial debris washing off the melting glacier. When
the land-locked ice mass finally melted, it left a great depression in the landscape.

Enjoy an overnight
stay at the Deer Creek Lodge, the camping facilities, or rent out the Harding
Cabin (once a presidential retreat). While you're there, enjoy golfing, tennis,
hiking, biking, swimming and fishing. Stop in at the marina and rent a jet ski
or take a boat out for the day. Maybe even a picnic would satisfy you after a
day at the beach. There's just so much to do at Deer Creek State Park. Also visit
the Deer Creek Dam, run by the Army Corps of Engineers.

A 4 acre micro farm that offers a vegetable and meat CSA. They raise chickens, ducks, geese, hogs and have 2 goats. They also have a bed and breakfast cottage that is available by the night. The winery building has a retail area and farm market. The winery is open Tuesday thru Thursday by appointment.